


The Finish Line

by thatwriterlady



Series: 30 Day Writing Challenge 2017 [18]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Domestic, Attraction, Doctor Castiel, Flirting, Fluff, Jealous Gabriel (Supernatural), Lawyer Gabriel (Supernatural), Lawyer Sam Winchester, M/M, Mechanic Dean, Runners, Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-18
Updated: 2017-11-18
Packaged: 2019-02-04 21:35:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,219
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12779994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatwriterlady/pseuds/thatwriterlady
Summary: Cas does marathons on a regular basis, and this one he happens to be doing with his brother's love interest, Sam.  They end up running most of the race together.  At the end, he's feeling pretty good.  He was second across the finish line and he's both exhausted and starving, but he's also intrigued when Sam's brother introduces himself.  The man is gorgeous, friendly, and clearly interested.  And the best part of all?  Cas is about to transfer to Chicago to take on a new position, which is where Dean happens to live.





	The Finish Line

**Author's Note:**

> The word for today is "Fifth". I thought about how I wanted to use it, and I tried to stay away from alcohol, lol. This idea came to mind, and I thought it would be cute, so I ran with it.
> 
> While I was posting this though, my daughter's guinea pig Daisy Grace died. This has already been a rough year, but my daughter was deeply attached to Daisy, and she's not handling her death well at all. I've been consoling her. It's been a bad evening. Daisy was a special part of our family and was very well loved. 
> 
> My intention was not to bring everyone down. I'm just stating what just happened. Death is a part of life, and my daughter knows this. She accepts it and she knows Daisy is no longer in pain. She just misses her best friend terribly, and her heart will ache for a long time to come. It happens when we lose our furry friends. I may just have to add Daisy in to one of my upcoming stories. 
> 
> I do hope you enjoy this story, I'm still playing catch up. I'm at least feeling a little better as far as the bronchitis and sinus infection goes. My knee, however is bothering me more. I have therapy Wednesday, I'll talk to my therapist then about it, see what he says. Overall it's hurting a lot less than it was, but I almost couldn't even walk Saturday, it hurt so much. It's still bugging me. Hopefully he'll know what exercises will help it feel better. I just want to be able to walk without the stupid brace. Ok, I'm off to write the next story. So I don't fall any further behind!

**Day 18~**

**Fifth~**

Cas reached the sign in area and looked around.  There was already a fairly large crowd gathered for this early in the morning.  He signed in, got his number and walked over to where his brother and best friend were standing.

 

“When does this start?”  Anna asked.

 

“It begins at eight.”  Cas replied as he began his warm up stretches. 

 

“Well, we’re going to see you off, then we’re going to drive to the halfway point to greet you.  If we can’t find parking, one of us is going to keep circling and the other will be at the line to snap pictures and say hi.  Once you’ve passed by, we’ll head on down to the finish line and we have a spot there to park already.  My friend lives a few blocks from the finish line, in a condo, and we’ll be parking in his underground garage.  He’s actually running in the race too, so Anna and I will meet up with his brother and be waiting for you at the very end.”  Gabe explained.

 

“Oh, are you talking about Sam?”  Cas asked.

 

“Yeah.  I have no idea where he is in this crowd, or where his brother is.  I’m not even sure Dean came to the start.  I don’t think he’d want to bring his car down here, it’s too congested.  He drives an antique and drove in from out of town to watch the race.  Sam runs every year and Dean comes out to watch him.”

 

“Well, I’ve run it in the past, but next year I plan to run in at least eight different races up in Chicago.  I’m excited about that.”  Cas said as he began stretching out his hamstrings.

 

“That’s where Dean lives.  He drives down for this race, stays the weekend with Sam, then heads back.  He owns a chain of auto shops up there.  Sam goes up to run in some of those races too.  He’s as big of a health nut as you are.  Maybe even more of one.  You at least eat a cheeseburger once in a while.  I only ever see him eating salads.  I think he’s part rabbit.”

 

Cas laughed as Anna began pinning his number onto his back.  People were beginning to line up. 

 

“Who is Sam, and is he single?”  She asked.  Cas grinned. 

 

“He’s single, as far as I know, but you might have to fight my brother for him.”

 

Anna’s eyes twinkled mischievously as she looked at Gabe.  He shot her a dirty look and tried to push her away when she grabbed him and planted a loud kiss on his cheek.

 

“Aww, Gabby, I would never steal your widdle crush from you.”

 

“Oh, there’s nothing small about Sam.”  Cas snorted.  “He’s like, 6’6 or something crazy like that.”

 

“Wow, Gabe, you really like them big, don’t you.”  She teased, patting his cheeks and giggling when he pushed her hands away.  He grinned though and waggled his eyebrows.

 

“You know it.  He’s gorgeous.”

 

“You better go get in line.”  Anna said.  “We’ll be here to cheer you on.”

 

He smiled and pulled her in for a hug.  “Thank you.  I love having you here to support me.  It means so much.”  He let her go and grabbed his brother to hug him too.

 

They watched him go and line up with the rest of the runners.

 

“He’s always looked so good in his running shorts.” Anna said.  “I wish my ass looked that good.  Or my calves.”  She looked down at her own legs, turning them this way and that.  “I need to tone more.”

 

“Stair stepper will tone them.  Or the stair master.”  Gabe said as he scanned the other runners.  There had to be more than 500 people gathered.  One head stuck out above the rest though.  “Look!  There’s Sam!”

 

“Which one?”  Anna followed where he was pointing with her eyes, spotting the tall man with his hair pulled back in a little bun.  He was stretching his arms as he waited for the horn that would announce the start of the race.

 

“That’s Sam, he pulled his hair back for the race.”

 

“You didn’t tell me he had long hair.  He’s really hot.”

 

Gabe grinned.  “Told you he was gorgeous.  His hair’s not that long.  It would be unprofessional if it was.”

 

The horn blared and the runners took off.  Anna clapped and cheered while Gabe whistled loudly as they watched Cas set off at a steady pace.  He always set a pace for himself the first 2/3 of the race, and then picked up the pace the last part.  It was how he’d won or been in the top six in more than 40 races since he’s started participating in them in middle school.  He intended to be in the top six at the end of this race too.  Once he was out of sight Gabe turned to Anna and rubbed his hands together.

 

“So, we move on to the middle point now?  They should reach it in approximately an hour.  We’ll get there in about fifteen by car if we leave now, and maybe we can grab some coffee and a Danish before we try to find a parking spot.” 

 

She nodded in agreement.  “That sounds perfect. I’m freezing and I could really use some coffee.  Let’s go.”

 

He motioned towards the parking lot, bowing slightly.  “Lead the way.”

 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Cas focused on his breathing and the pounding of his shoes on the pavement.  Slap, slap, slap, he kept moving forward, carefully avoiding the other runners.  He accepted water only from verified volunteers, and only twice.  Three miles in, he spotted Sam and made his way towards the man.

 

“Hello, Sam.”

 

“Hey, Cas!  Gabe said you were running today.  Is he here?”  Sam asked, scanning the crowd.

 

“He’ll be at the halfway mark, but only if he can find parking.  Otherwise he’ll be at the end.  Says he’s parking in your garage.”

 

“Right, he is.  I have an extra parking spot and then the building offers extra spaces, so there’s space for his car and my brother’s.”  Sam said.

 

“My friend Anna’s actually the one driving, but thank you for offering the parking spot. “

 

They ran in silence together for another three miles until the halfway mark came into sight.  Then Cas began looking around for his brother and Anna. 

 

“Gabe says your brother comes in to cheer you on when you run.  He lives in Chicago?” 

 

“Yep.  Gabe says you just transferred there.  I’ll introduce you guys later.  At least you’ll know someone there.  You planning to keep running in marathons?”  Sam asked.

 

“I’m already signed up for like, eight.”  Cas chuckled.  He wiped the sweat off his brow and pushed his hair off his forehead.  The morning was already proving to be a hot one.

 

“Hey, when we get back to my place, you can take a shower.  Don’t go getting in your friend’s car covered in sweat.  I have tankless water heaters in both bathrooms, so we can shower at the same time and you’ll have endless hot water.”

 

“Thank you.  I have a bag of clean clothes in the trunk of Anna’s car.  A shower would be much appreciated.  Oh!  There’s my brother!”  Cas raised a hand to wave to Gabe and Sam turned to look for him.  Gabe was waving at them both.

 

“Half way there guys!”  Gabe cheered.  “Way to go!”

 

They weaved closer and Gabe tossed them both a bottle of water.

 

“Thanks.”  Sam smiled as he twisted off the top and took a sip.  Cas chuckled at the way his brother’s eyes lingered on Sam’s ass once they were past him.

 

“You know my brother’s into you, right?” 

 

Sam blushed and averted his gaze.  For a second there Cas was pretty sure he wasn’t going to answer, but then he gave a quick nod.

 

“Yeah, I’ve known for a while now.”

 

Cas took a sip of his own water as they ran another mile before he spoke again. 

 

“I’m not like my brother, I’m not going to tease you or play matchmaker.  I was just curious if you noticed.  He’s pretty obvious.”

 

Sam snorted.  “He really is, but…he’s also pretty adorable.”

 

Cas arched an eyebrow, surprised by his response.  No one had ever called his brother adorable before.  Annoying, yes, but adorable?  Not once.

 

“Does that mean you’re interested?”

 

“I am, but I like playing hard to get.  He’s so smug and always thinks he can get anything he wants, so I’m showing him that he can’t have everything quite so easily.”  Sam replied smugly.  Cas laughed.

 

“That’s fantastic.  If you want to make him jealous, flirt with my friend.  I’ll let her know ahead of time that you’re doing it to push Gabe’s buttons.  She’ll play along.”

 

“You’re devious.  We’re going to get along great.”  Sam said with a grin.

 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

They ran the last few miles in silence, concentrating on getting ahead of everyone else.  At some point Cas started to pull ahead and Sam waved him on.  He put on more speed, putting distance between himself and most of the other runners and when the finish line came into view he managed one last burst of speed.  Gabe and Anna were there, cheering and clapping excitedly as he flew across the finish line.  He slowed and finally came to a stop.  His leg muscles quivered and every inch of his body was dripping in sweat but he felt pretty damn fantastic.  Anna bounced over and was about to throw her arms around him, until she saw how sweaty she was.  He laughed and waved in understanding.

                                                                                                         

“Yeah, I’m pretty gross right now, don’t bother.”

 

“You did awesome!  You were the second person over the finish line!”  She exclaimed. 

 

“Really?  That’s great.  I was fourth last time I ran this one.”  He looked back and saw Sam coming.  As soon as he was over the finish line he started making his way over.

 

“This is Sam, Gabe’s dream man.  He’s going to pretend to flirt with you late to make Gabe jealous.  Just play along.  He’s trying to teach Gabe a lesson since he always things he can get anything he wants.  Sam’s interested, but doesn’t want to give in that easily.”  Cas leaned in and whispered to his friend.  She giggled and nodded.

 

“I gotcha.  It’s always been fun to mess with Gabe.”

 

Sam arrived at the same time Gabe came over with a man Cas had never seen before.  He was dressed in jeans and a leather jacket, and was _hot_.  Gabe clapped his brother on the back and grimaced as he wiped his hand off on his pants.

 

“Gross.  You did great, Cassie.  I’m so proud of you.”

 

“Thank you.  I did better than the last time I ran.”

 

“So did I.”  Sam said.  “I came in fifth.  Last time I ran, I came in 26th.  This was an all-time best for me.”

 

“That’s am amazing improvement.”  Anna offered her hand and a flirty smile.  “I’m Anna, Cas’ best friend.”

 

Sam noticed the way Gabe’s eyes narrowed and covered up his own smile by licking his lips.  He shook her hand and turned to look at his own brother who was making his way over to Cas, extending his own hand.

 

“Hi, I’m Dean, Sam’s brother.  You must be Gabe’s brother, Cas.”

 

Cas smiled as he shook his hand.  “I am.  It’s nice to meet you, Dean.”

 

“You ran hard, didn’t you.”  Dean said, commenting on the sweat that was just starting to cool on his heated skin.  He nodded.

 

“I did.  I always do though.”

 

“You as health obsessed as my brother?” 

 

Cas laughed and shook his head.  “No, not quite.  I still know what a cheeseburger is.”  He joked.

 

“Hey!”  Sam laughed.  Dean broke out in a wide grin and it felt like whatever little test he’d just been subjected to, Cas had passed. 

 

“Well that’s good to know.  Why don’t we get out of here, go get something to eat and celebrate?  You guys did awesome.”

 

“Cas and me, we’re going to shower first at my place.”  Sam said.  “Then we can all go out for lunch.  I’m actually pretty hungry.  For something _other_ than a salad.”

 

“You’re not planning to shower _with_ my brother, are you?”  Gabe frowned up at Sam and Cas stifled a laugh.

 

“God no!  I have two showers and tankless water heaters!”  Sam cried!  “Geez, Gabe, what kind of guy do you think I am?”

 

“Sam, we need to go finish up our paperwork so we can go.  I really would like that shower.”  Cas motioned for him to follow, and Sam shook his head in disappointment at Gabe before going with him.  Once they’d left, Anna smacked Gabe in the arm.

 

“What the hell were you thinking?!”

 

“Ow!  I don’t know!  It sounded weird to me the way he said it!  I didn’t know he had two showers!”  Gabe rubbed at his arm and moved out of her reach so she couldn’t hit him again.

 

“And you didn’t think that maybe they’d take turns?”  Dean asked with a laugh.  “You’re into my brother, aren’t you.  Dude, you’re so jealous.”

 

“Am not.”  Gabe crossed his arms and glared at Dean.  It just made the man roll his eyes.

 

“Look, obviously I’m not competition, I’m his damn brother, and your brother isn’t into him.  At least, I don’t think he is.  Chill with the jealousy, Sam doesn’t like that.  He demands respect and maturity.  If you can’t offer that, he won’t give you the time of day.  It’s how he’s always been.”

 

Gabe knew he was right.  He had to stop acting like an ass whenever anyone so much as even looked Sam’s way.  If he even wanted a chance with the man, he needed to start showing him that he could respect him, and that he really did want him as more than just a conquest.  For heaven’s sake, he was crazy about the guy.

 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

After picking up their medals, Cas and Sam returned and they started the walk back to Sam’s building.  When they reached the garage Cas followed Anna to her car to get his bag of clothes and they rode the elevator up separately from everyone else.

 

“Dean’s really cute.”  She said.  Cas smirked at her.  He knew she’d have something to say about him.

 

“He’s not cute.  He’s fucking gorgeous.”

 

She suddenly became animated, waving her hands excitedly and bouncing up and down.  “I know!  He’s dreamy!  His eyes are so green, and oh…that voice!  Yours is deep but I think his might be deeper, but in a different way.  And his smile…O.M.G!  It’s panty melting!”  She crossed her arms and leaned back against the wall.  “You need to hit that.”

 

He gaped at her in shock.  “Anna!”

 

“What?  I’m right.  You need to hit that.  He was totally checking out your ass when you and Sam were going to finish your paperwork.”

 

The elevator stopped and the doors opened.  They were on Sam’s floor.

 

“You’re certain?”  He asked as they stepped out.

 

“Absolutely.  And he made sure he headed straight for you the moment his eyes landed on you too.”  She replied.

 

He mulled over her words as they made their way down to Sam’s unit.  It was on the end, and the door was left unlocked for them.  As soon as they stepped inside, they could hear people talking.  Gabe and Sam were chatting in the kitchen somewhere.  Dean appeared in the living room from around the corner.

 

“Hey, I set up the guest bath for you.  It’s this way.”

 

Cas followed him back around the corner and into the bathroom.

 

“Thank you for setting things out for me.”

 

“No problem.  I wasn’t sure what you’d brought with you, so I grabbed some of my stuff since Sam really didn’t have anything spare, so I left shampoo and body wash in there, and a clean washcloth.  There’s a bath towel on the toilet but if you need another one, that cabinet there has more.  Do you need a razor or anything?”  Dean asked.

 

“No, I don’t think I’ll need one.  Shampoo and the body wash is good enough.  I’m just glad to wash away the sweat.  Thank you.  I packed clothes, but didn’t bring soap because I didn’t expect to get to take a shower.  This is a special treat.”  Cas replied, smiling.  He set his bag down on the floor and toed his shoes off.  Dean lingered a moment, as if he wanted to ask something, and then shook his head.

 

“I’ll see you in a bit.  Enjoy your endless hot water.”

 

He closed the door behind himself, leaving Cas alone in the bathroom.  Cas stripped down quickly and turned the shower on.  The water heated up fast and he got in, groaning at how good it felt on his sore, tired muscles.  Tomorrow he wanted to treat himself to a massage. 

 

The shower felt amazing, and Dean’s shampoo smelled really good.  He washed his hair twice and took his time washing his body to rid himself of all the sweat.  When he was satisfied that he no long smelled like a gym locker, he turned the water off and got out.  He dried off and dressed in the clean clothes he’d brought with, jeans, a blue button down, and his black oxfords.  His sweaty running clothes were stuffed in a plastic bag and then into his canvas bag to be taken home and washed later. 

 

He tried using his fingers to tame his hair but it was pointless.  Even with a brush it didn’t want to cooperate, so he just left it.  After wiping down the shower and making sure everything he had used was wiped down as well, he opened the bathroom door to find Dean standing there.

 

“Oh, uh, I just…had to pee.”

 

“Oh, the bathroom’s free now.”  Cas stepped out of the room, smiling softly at him.  Dean had taken off the leather jacket and now all he wore was a gray Henley.  It emphasized his chest and thick forearms.  He was built strong, and it made him even more attractive.

 

“Sam’s just out of the shower now too but he takes forever to dry and style his hair.  We’ll be going as soon as he’s done.  The place is right down the street, so we’re walking there.”  Dean said as he stepped into the bathroom.

 

“Ok.”  Cas carried his bag out to the living room where Gabe and Anna were sitting and watching TV.

 

“Was he standing outside the bathroom door the entire time I was in there?”  He asked, careful to keep his voice low so Dean didn’t hear.

 

Anna looked up from the show they were watching at him, and then towards the hall.

 

“No, he was here with us, but he kept looking towards the hall.  I guess he was waiting for you to come out so he could go use the bathroom?”

 

Cas shrugged.  “I guess so.”  That was mildly disappointing.  He sat down next to her and set the bag down on the other side of the couch so the smell wouldn’t bother anyone.  Gabe had dozed off, his chin dipping down to rest on his chest and he was snoring softly.  Cas snorted and shook his head.  What an image that was going to be when Sam finally emerged from his beauty treatment to find his suitor drooling on himself.

 

Dean came back and sat down in the armchair he’d apparently been sitting in before.  He smirked and shook his head at Gabe before looking over at Cas.

 

“Feel better?”

 

“Much.  I’m tired, could sleep for a week, but coffee will help with that.”  Case replied.

 

“I bet.  Sam says you’re transferring to Chicago.  What do you do?”

 

“I’m a neurologist.  I’ve been offered a better position there.”  Cas replied. 

 

“So you’re a doctor.”

 

Cas nodded.  “I am.”

 

“And Sleeping Beauty here is a lawyer at the firm with Sam?”  Dean jerked a thumb in Gabe’s direction.  Cas chuckled and nodded.

 

“That would be correct.  We have another brother, Michael, he’s a dentist, and a sister, Hester who’s an archaeologist.  She’s currently in South America on a dig.  Anna may as well be my sister, we’ve been best friends since kindergarten.”

 

“Darn right, we have.”  Anna said.

 

“What is it you do?”  Dean asked her.

 

“I am a nurse.  When Cas decided he wanted to go into medicine, I decided I wanted to as well, except we were like, eight, and by the time we got out of high school I realized medical school was _not_ for me.  So, I went to nursing school instead.  While he went into neurology, I went into surgery.  I’m a surgical nurse.”  She explained.

 

“You don’t run?”

 

She grimaced and tossed her hair back over her shoulder.  “God no.”

 

Cas laughed, startling his brother who snorted loudly but didn’t wake up.  Dean grinned and Anna covered her mouth, stifling a giggle.  Just then, Sam walked in the room.  He arched an eyebrow when he spotted Gabe.

 

“Real sexy sight, eh?”  Dean teased.

 

“He’s been awake since five, give him a break.”  Sam admonished.  He reached over and shook Gabe gently.  He slowly stirred and lifted his head.  When he realized it was Sam standing over him, he wiped at his eyes and mouth furiously.

 

“I wasn’t sleeping.”

 

“Sure you weren’t.”  Cas rolled his eyes, laughing.  Anna patted his shoulder.

 

“You were snoring, Gabby.  And drooling.”

 

“Damn it.”  He muttered.

 

“You were tired, I get it.  Come on, we’ll go get some coffee and food.”  Sam said.

 

Everyone stood up and Cas grabbed his bag as they all headed towards the door.  Coffee and food sounded fantastic to everyone.

 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

After dropping off his bag in the trunk, they started walking to the restaurant.  Gabe and Sam were engaged in a discussion about a case Sam had recently been working on, and Anna was interested enough to ask them questions and join in on their conversation which left Dean and Cas walking behind them, free to talk amongst themselves.  Cas suspected that she was doing him a favor, giving him a chance to see if Dean was really interested.  She was the best wingman he could have ever asked for.

 

“So, do you have a place lined up already in Chicago?”  Dean asked.

 

“I do.  I sold my condo here to Anna and I bought a new one near the clinic I’ll be working at.  I won’t actually be in the city, I’ll be in the suburb of Oak Park, have you heard of it?”

 

“Sure have, I have a shop there.  Where in Oak Park is your condo?”

 

“It’s on Ridgeland, near Lake street.  Do you know the area?”  Cas asked. 

 

“Oh yeah, I know it well.  My shop is literally about three blocks from your place.  I think I know the clinic you’re going to be working at too.  It’s a few blocks from the hospital, right?”

 

Cas nodded.  “Yes, it’s part of it.  The condo is in need of a lot of work, so I got it at a steep discount.  I’ll spend my days off fixing it up, but I got it for almost $75,000 less than the asking price, and it won’t take nearly that much to fix it.”

 

“I, uh, can help with that.  I know how to fix houses.  I used to do it as a side job.  Anything from laying flooring to counters to cabinetry to drywall.  Plumbing and some electrical too.  Like, I can put in ceiling fans, change outlets, etc.”  Dean offered.  He smiled shyly.  “At least you’ll know someone when you get there.”

 

Cas smiled back.  “It would be much appreciated.  I could use the help, and the company.”

 

“Do you live here in Indy?”  Dean asked.

 

“No, I live further north, in Lafayette.  I come down once a year though for the race.”  Cas replied. 

 

“You planning to run in it next year?” 

 

“Thinking about it.  If it doesn’t conflict with the ones I signed up for in Chicago.”  Cas said.  They had reached the restaurant and Dean pulled the door open for him.

 

“Well, if you want, I come down for this every year, to support Sammy, so if you want to like, carpool, we can drive down together.  I come down the night before and crash in his spare bedroom.  It would be much more convenient for you, I could drive you both to the start.”

 

Cas touched his arm, feeling the muscles flutter under his fingertips.  Anna had been right, Dean was interested.

 

“That would be wonderful, thank you.”

 

“Hey guys, we’re over here.”  Gabe called out to them.  Cas nodded and motioned towards their group.

 

“Shall we?”

 

Dean smiled and placing a hand on Cas’ lower back, guided him through the crowded restaurant to their table.

 

“I sure hope you guys ordered coffee.”  He said as they sat down beside one another.

 

“Two carafes.”  Sam replied. 

 

“One is for me, right?”  Cas joked.

 

“That makes the other one for me.”  Dean laughed.  Gabe raised his hand to flag down their server.

 

“Excuse me, we’re going to need more coffee!”

**Author's Note:**

> Hopefully you liked this one, and were amused by jealous Gabe, and Sam teasing him. I'm off to write the next one. Thank you for reading! Kudos and comments are always welcome.


End file.
